Drop the Checked Box: Inclusive Hiring Should Include Second Chance Hires

By Tony Bedard , CEO, Frontier Co-op??

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April marks Second Chance Month — an opportunity to put a spotlight on the impact of supporting people who were incarcerated to reenter society through programs, resources and skills-training opportunities. Yet, even as the conversation around second chance hiring has expanded in the last few years, many employers still fail to see second chance hires as part of their inclusive hiring efforts.??

It’s no secret that second chance employment practices are beneficial for employers across industries, with research revealing 85% of HR professionals and 81% of business leaders reporting individuals with justice-involved pasts perform the same as, or better than, employees without – reinforcing the value second chance hires can bring to the company.??

As part of Frontier Co-op 's Breaking Down Barriers to Employment initiative, second chance hiring is a cornerstone of our inclusive hiring strategy alongside the tools and resources we and our partners provide to justice-involved individuals to help achieve economic mobility and reach their personal and professional goals.??

This approach was adopted after I visited a university credit class in a prison program and saw the untapped talent of hard-working students who needed a fresh start when they reentered society. Roughly 1-in-3 American adults have a justice-involved past – that’s a large set of potential hard-working, skilled and ready-to-work employees to write off just because of a past mistake.???

Our award-winning program was implemented in 2018 to offer a holistic approach to address barriers our employees and wider community encounter through second chance hiring, but also through providing additional wrap-around services like access to subsidized childcare options, transportation, apprenticeship and skills training programs and recently launched savings match program. We’re also currently working to develop an ESL program with a local partner.???

Through this program, we’ve employed almost 400 apprentices to support skills development and resume experience for career advancement and almost a quarter of our production staff have been employed through this program – representing 185 employees with criminal justice-involved backgrounds and/or struggling with homelessness hired on since the program’s inception.?

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Alisia Weaver , one of the program’s participants who has volunteered to tell her story, has been working with us for four years, and speaks directly to the impact both Breaking Down Barriers – and her subsequent career – has had on her future:?

“This experience has helped me advance in all aspects of my life. I have my own place, a vehicle, daycare for my son. I’ve come forward to tell my story because I just want to encourage people and inspire them not to give up no matter what setbacks they face. I also want to encourage companies to try something different and consider adopting second chance hiring practices. It could be beneficial for you, but it could also change someone’s life.” - Alisia Weaver, Machine Operator?

By hiring individuals with diverse backgrounds and perspectives, we’ve seen the impact it can have on our business, production and profits, but most importantly to our company culture. Including second chance hires as part of our inclusive hiring strategy has only strengthened our values and living our purpose of Doing Good, Works.???

But we can’t make these changes in silos. As a second chance employer, we’re proud to partner with organizations like the Responsible Business Initiative for Justice (RBIJ) and REFORM Alliance who are leading the change and helping businesses?to remove barriers and create career opportunities for individuals with justice-involved pasts, to ensure a more inclusive workforce for all.?

"Businesses play a crucial role in keeping communities safe and healthy. Hiring second-chance citizens can break cycles of incarceration, revitalize neighborhoods, and forge pathways for people to reach their potential–and that includes those with past convictions. By prioritizing inclusive hiring, we not only demonstrate our commitment to the communities we belong to, but also enhance our organizations with capable, dedicated, and resilient talent." -- Maha Jweied , CEO of the Responsible Business Initiative for Justice .?

Overall, we know we can’t hire everyone regardless of their past and we don’t view this program as a rehabilitation process. What we look to achieve is to eliminate a bias that could negatively impact good candidates along the hiring journey – and that’s something we think every organization and company should aim to do.???

As Second Chance Month sunsets, I’d challenge all business leaders to do the work, look inward and see if there’s space in their hiring efforts to include justice-involved individuals.??

?By embracing second chance hiring, we create a more inclusive company culture, improve employee morale, diversify our teams, and improve the performance of our business – demonstrating that Doing Good, Works.??

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